Workers compensation scam in California leads to 26 arrests

Among those who were arrested were three doctors in the Orange County area.

A massive number of arrests have resulted from a California workers compensation scam that was recently busted. Among the arrested individuals were three doctors. Two of the doctors were from Newport Coast and another doctor was from Huntington Beach.

In total, there were 26 arrests including business owners and medical professionals.

The workers compensation scam is estimated to have swindled insurance companies and consumers out of $40 million in kickbacks and fraudulent insurance billing. This, according to an announcement made by the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Authorities in the state have accused Christopher King and Tanya Moreland King of designing a complex insurance fraud scam. The husband and wife team brought in pharmacists and doctors to participate in this scheme. The idea was to prescribe and fill unnecessary patient treatments while charging it to workers compensation coverage.

The workers compensation scam ran through the Kings own medical management and medical billing businesses.

The Kings own Monarch Medical Group, One Source Laboratories and King Medical Management.

Allegations from prosecutors point the finger at the Kings for making both written and oral agreements with doctors throughout the state. The paid the doctors every time an oral medication, compound cream or whenever they urine drug test. While those payments were allegedly kickbacks, authorities said they were labeled as being marketing expenses in order to hide their true nature.

Newport Coast doctors, Dr. Kourosh Shamlou and Dr. Ismael Silva, as well as Huntington Beach doctor, Dr. Ismael Geli Silva Jr. are among those who were arrested. They are joined by 23 other people in facing a string of felony charges. Among those charges are: filing fraudulent insurance benefit claims, filing false claims and referral of clients or patients for compensation. This, according to the records filed at the Orange County Superior Court. Convictions can come with up to a quarter of a century in prison each.

Prosecutors in this workers compensation scam case allege that the Kings were billing for unnecessary tests, treatments, medications and creams from 2011 to 2015 for the purposes of their own profit.